By L. K. Hewlett
“There are terrorist cells right here in the Caribbean,” Dwyer Astaphan, minister of National Security.
He said while delivering the keynote address at the CICTE/TSA/Security Workshop last week.
“Although the awful events of 9/11 woke us up, we are now less awake than we need to be. We are overly complacent even with all of that happening,” Astaphan said. “We have terrorists right here in the Caribbean today…and this is no joke. The terrorist cells are not necessarily hostile to Caribbean governments or people; they are looking for locations and opportunities. Given the propensities of youth throughout the world to be anti-authority and rebellious, the terrorism mentality and all of the negative sub-cultures become extremely attractive to them.”
The five-day workshop was a joint collaboration between the Organisation of American States, Transportation Security Administration, and local security organisations.
The workshop was the first in a series aimed at preparing stakeholders in the Civil Aviation sector for implementing enhanced security to reduce opportunities for terrorism.
Participants in the workshop included police officers, customs and immigration officers, fire and rescue services, airline representatives, and the Legal and Foreign Affairs departments.
“Safety and security are among the central pre-occupations of governments not only here in the region, but internationally. It is our responsibility to protect all of our citizens and to anticipate the response to natural and other types of disasters, and this requires efficient collaboration between government, stakeholders, agencies, non-governmental organisations and businesses,” said Superintendent Ivor Blake.
He said that often these collaborations take the form of international co-operation and co-ordination and it was against this background that the workshop was being conducted.
Blake said the participants were there to provide another segment in capacity building and human resource development.
He noted that local security agencies, especially in aviation, should place great emphasis on staying ahead of the rapid changes in technology that are taking place in the world today.
He said that it was recognised that our law enforcement and other response agencies needed to be equipped with the tools to operate in an increasingly complex and demanding environment. Blake said the evolution of global threats such as international terrorism and organised crime along with the challenges of local criminal activity, require a sustained and comprehensive approach to training and capacity building in our federal agencies.
Starret Greene, OAS Director, said his agency, through its Inter-American Committee against Terrorism, is leveraging its resources as well as its partnerships with governmental and inter-governmental organisations and agencies.
He said that the world had changed considerably in the past decade and agencies in St. Kitts and Nevis would have to feature matters of security prominently in their daily operations. He said the change has produced an increased degree of threat to our safety, and therefore the agencies need to make the requisite adjustments that will serve to preserve our security and ensure our survival.
Greene said that as we prepare to host World Cup games in 2007, extensive preparations in terms of ensuring there is adequate security, have to be made.
“This peaceful region has had to change its approach as well as its attitudes toward the issue of security. Governments have had to take a number of specific measures to strengthen security at important installations, such as sea and air ports, sensitive industrial complexes, power plants, government buildings and recreational and tourist centres. This is to ensure that no country in the Caribbean becomes the soft under-belly for the launching of acts of terrorism against its neighbours to the North, South, East or West,” Greene said.
Participants were admonished that terrorists could strike at any time and with deadly consequences. They were told that it is our individual as well as collective responsibility to prevent this from happening.
By providing critical training in the area of aviation security, the workshop aims to help to further strengthen security in St. Kitts and Nevis. The training targeted those persons who were connected directly or indirectly to the federation’s efforts in building an effective security umbrella of which aviation security is a critical part of the entire equation.
In 2005, 168,483 visitors arrived at the R.L. Bradshaw International Airport, and 166,470 passengers departed, and given the increased number of persons using that facility, it is essential that the requisite security measures and procedures be put in place to guarantee their safety.
Local security forces were commended for raising admirably to the challenge of St.Kitts hosting the One-Day and Test Cricket Match, the International Whaling Commission Conference and the meeting of the OECS authorities. The federation also hosted the celebration marking the 25th Anniversary of the Treaty of Basseterre, the St. Kitts Music Festival, and the 27th conference of the Heads of State and Government of CARICOM. These events took place over the span of a few weeks, some occurring simultaneously.
